Manual treadmill which can be set to an exercise speed

ABSTRACT

A manual treadmill includes a frame, a treadmill belt having a top surface for allowing a user to exercise thereon and movement of the user driving the treadmill belt to rotate, a sensing apparatus for sensing a rotational speed of the treadmill belt, a resistance adjusting apparatus for generating a resistance to impede rotation of the treadmill belt, an elevation angle adjusting apparatus for changing an inclination of the top surface of the treadmill belt, and a control unit. The control unit is in communication with the sensor, the resistance adjusting apparatus and the elevation angle adjusting apparatus and operates one of the resistance adjusting apparatus and the elevation angle adjusting apparatus to control the rotational speed of the treadmill belt, and further operates the other one of that if the rotational speed of the treadmill belt does not reach a predetermined target rotational speed.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This is a continuation of application Ser. No. 17/329,108, filed May 24,2021, which is a continuation of application Ser. No. 16/423,121, filedMay 27, 2019, now U.S. Pat. No. 11,027,168.

BACKGROUND 1. Field of the Invention

The present disclosure relates to a treadmill. More particularly, thepresent disclosure relates to a manual treadmill which can be set to anexercise speed.

2. Description of the Related Art

In the field of physical exercise and rehabilitation, treadmills arecommon exercise apparatuses. Generally, every treadmill has an exerciseplatform (or a running board) and a continuous belt mounted around theexercise platform for a user walking or running thereon. According tothe driving force upon the continuous belt, the treadmill is typicallydivided into two categories. The former one is a motorized treadmillwhich is driven by a powered driving force such as an electric motor,and the latter one is a manual treadmill which is driven by a forceapplied by a user.

Generally speaking, regarding the motorized treadmill, the rotationalspeed of the continuous belt corresponds to the walking speed or therunning speed of a user. This rotational speed of the continuous belt isshown on the console, and will hereinafter be referred to as an“exercise speed”, with the commonly used units of kilometer per hour(km/hr) or mile per hour (mile/hr). The exercise speed may be set by theuser via inputting an instruction through an inputting apparatus to themotorized treadmill. During a period of time during which exercise isperformed, the continuous belt of the motorized treadmill rotates at aset exercise speed with the motorized treadmill controlling the outputpower of the motorized treadmill's power controlling system to controlthe rotational speed of the electric motor. The rotational speed of thecontinuous belt may be accurately controlled by the power controllingsystem, allowing the user to set a demanding exercise speed and/or ademanding exercise program to exercise for a fixed period of time at achosen exercise intensity and/or calorie consumption.

Typically, the rotational speed of the continuous belt of a manualtreadmill may not be able to be as easily controlled. The rotation ofthe continuous belt is driven by a user walking or running on the topsurface of the continuous belt. By walking or running on the topsurface, forces applied to the continuous belt along the top surface areapplied with a user's feet continuously. In this case, the forcesapplied to the continuous belt, and therefore the rotational speed ofthe continuous belt may be influenced by the user gripping the handrailsto apply more or less reactive load to the continuous belt, fast or slowmoving speed, and/or large or small stride length of the user. If themanual treadmill includes a concave top surface such as disclosed inU.S. Pat. No. 8,343,016, the position of the top surface where a usersteps also affects the rotational speed of the continuous belt. Inaddition, manual treadmills with resistance adjusting apparatuses arealso disclosed. A user could manually set a predetermined resistanceaccording to an individual's physiological condition and/or expectedexercise program. For example, the resistance of a treadmill during awalking program is certainly set to be higher than the resistance of atreadmill during a running program. Adjusting the resistance may changethe exercise speed while the exercise motions of the user and theexercise force applied by the user remains the same. It is worthy ofnote that the aforementioned methods are able to change the relativelevel of the exercise speed to allow the continuous belt to be able torotate faster or to rotate slower, but these methods do not allow amanual treadmill to set an absolute value of the exercise speed, forinstance, setting the exercise speed to be 10 km/hr. Therefore, it ishard for a user to realize the actual exercise intensity and the actualcalorie consumption by exercising at a fixed exercise speed on themanual treadmill. Although some manual treadmill could keep sensing anddisplaying the rotational speed of the continuous belt, it's stilldifficult to modify an exercise speed to set an exact target exercisespeed and/or to keep exercise at the exact target exercise speed byadjusting the motions of the user, the position of the top surface wherethe user steps on and/or the resistance to motion and so on, and theuser would be unable to enjoy and focus on the exercise course.

U.S. Pat. No. 8,007,408 discloses a manual treadmill which helps a userto exercise at a fixed exercise speed. In this disclosure, a controlunit of a manual treadmill is disclosed which is designed to adjust theelevation angle of an exercising platform during the course of theexercise to maintain a target speed. The platform includes a continuousbelt mounted thereon and an electronic control apparatus in-situmonitoring the rotational speed of the continuous belt while a user isexercising. If the set target exercise speed is faster (or slower) thanthe current exercise speed, the elevation angle of the exercisingplatform (the continuous belt) is increased (or decreased) so that theportion of the user's weight upon the continuous belt that applies adriving force to the top surface of the continuous belt is increased (ordecreased) in order to speed up (or slow down) the rotational speed ofthe continuous belt to approach the set target exercise speed. However,changing the elevation angle while exercising may limit the freedom andthe selectivity of exercise. In particular, if the elevation angle isthe only parameter that is adjusted to control the rotational speed ofthe continuous belt, a user would be unable to change from a walkingprogram to running program on an exercise surface with the sameelevation angle, or to change from a running program to a walkingprogram on an exercise surface with the same elevation angle. Similarlya user would be unable to perform a faster exercise on an exercisesurface with a smaller elevation angle, or to perform a slower exerciseon an exercise surface with a larger elevation angle.

SUMMARY

The present disclosure is directed to a manual treadmill that is capableof being set to a target exercise speed according to the demand of auser and is capable of being operated at the target exercise speed forthe user walking or running thereon.

According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a manual treadmill isdisclosed. The manual treadmill includes a frame, a treadmill beltmounted on the frame, a sensing apparatus, a resistance adjustingapparatus, an elevation angle adjusting apparatus, and a control unit.The treadmill belt has a top surface for allowing a user to performwalking, jogging or running thereon and movement of the user driving thetreadmill belt to rotate with respect to the frame. The sensingapparatus is configured to sense a rotational speed of the treadmillbelt and generate a corresponding speed signal. The resistance adjustingapparatus is coupled to the treadmill belt for generating a resistanceto impede rotation of the treadmill belt. The elevation angle adjustingapparatus is configured to change an inclination of the top surface ofthe treadmill belt. The control unit in communication with the sensor,the resistance adjusting apparatus and the elevation angle adjustingapparatus. The resistance adjusting apparatus can be controlled by thecontrol unit to control the resistance of the treadmill belt, and theelevation angle adjusting apparatus can be controlled by the controlunit to control the inclination of the top surface of the treadmillbelt. The control unit receives the speed signal from the sensingapparatus and operates one of the resistance adjusting apparatus and theelevation angle adjusting apparatus to control the rotational speed ofthe treadmill belt, and further operates the other one of the resistanceadjusting apparatus and the elevation angle adjusting apparatus if therotational speed of the treadmill belt does not reach a predeterminedtarget rotational speed.

Preferably, the control unit can be operable to increase the rotationalspeed of the treadmill belt by controlling the resistance adjustingapparatus to decrease the resistance and/or controlling the elevationangle adjusting apparatus to increase the inclination of the top surfaceof the treadmill belt. The control unit can be operable to decrease therotational speed of the treadmill belt by controlling the resistanceadjusting apparatus to increase the resistance and/or controlling theelevation angle adjusting apparatus to decrease the inclination of thetop surface of the treadmill belt.

Preferably, the treadmill further comprises a front roller rotatablymounted on a front end of the frame and a rear roller rotatably mountedon a rear end of the frame. The treadmill belt is mounted around thefront roller and the rear roller. Specifically, the height of frontroller is higher than the height of the rear roller so that the topsurface of the treadmill belt forms an inclined plane for allowing theuser to exercise thereon and the movement of the user drives thetreadmill belt to rotate in a direction from the front roller to therear roller.

Preferably, the resistance adjusting apparatus is coupled to the frontroller for impeding rotation of the front roller so as to controlrotational speed of the treadmill belt. The resistance adjustingapparatus is an eddy current brake configured to apply an eddy currentresistance to impede the rotation of the treadmill belt so as to controlthe rotational speed of the treadmill belt.

Preferably, when the control unit does not receive the speed signal fromthe sensing apparatus or the speed signal keeps zero for a predeterminedperiod of time, the control unit determines that there is no user on thetreadmill belt and controls the resistance adjusting apparatus toincrease the resistance to a maximum resistance.

Preferably, the control unit can be operable to control the elevationangle adjusting to change the inclination of the top surface of thetreadmill belt to a predetermined elevation angle, and then control theresistance adjusting apparatus to adjust rotational speed of thetreadmill belt.

Preferably, the control unit can be operable to increase the rotationalspeed of the treadmill belt by controlling the resistance adjustingapparatus to decrease the resistance applied to the treadmill belt. Whenthe resistance has reached a lower limit of available resistancesetting, the control unit is operable to increase the inclination of thetop surface of the treadmill belt for further increasing the rotationalspeed of the treadmill belt.

Further benefits and advantages of the present invention will becomeapparent after a careful reading of the detailed description withappropriate reference to the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a manual treadmill in accordance with afirst embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a side view of a manual treadmill in accordance with a firstembodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3 is a magnified view of the dotted rectangular portion shown inFIG. 1 ;

FIG. 4 is a magnified view of the dotted rectangular portion shown inFIG. 2 ;

FIG. 5 is a magnified view of a front portion of a manual treadmill inaccordance with a first embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 6 is an illustration of an exercise speed control mechanism of amanual treadmill in accordance with a first embodiment of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 7 is a flow chart of a control mode in accordance with a firstembodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 8 is an illustration of an exercise speed control mechanism of amanual treadmill similar with FIG. 6 except for comprising a concave topsurface;

FIG. 9 is an illustration of an exercise speed control mechanism of amanual treadmill in accordance with a second embodiment of the presentdisclosure;

FIGS. 10A and 10B are the schematic views of the frame of the manualtreadmill shown at a first elevation angle and at a second elevationangle in accordance with a second embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 11 is a flow chart of a control mode in accordance with a secondembodiment of the present disclosure.

DETAIL DESCRIPTION

In the following detailed description, for purposes of explanation,numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thoroughunderstanding of the disclosed embodiments. It will be apparent,however, that one or more embodiments may be practiced without thesespecific details. In other instances, well-known structures and devicesare schematically depicted in order to simplify the drawings.

Referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 , a manual treadmill 100 is illustratedin accordance with a first embodiment of the present disclosure. Themanual treadmill 100 includes a frame 10 which includes a base 11 stablystanding on the ground, two front uprights 12 extending upwardly fromleft and right front sides of the base 11, two back uprights 13extending upwardly from left and right back sides of the base 11, twoside poles 14 respectively connecting to the front uprights 12 and thecorresponding back uprights 13, and a front frame 15 connecting betweenthe top portions of the front uprights 12. The base 11 extends as arectangular shape and has a longer side extending from the front to theback of the manual treadmill 100. An exercise space S is defined on thebase 11, and a rear end of the exercise space S includes an entering andleaving portion between the back uprights 13 for a user entering andleaving the exercise space S from the back side of the manual treadmill100.

The manual treadmill 100 further comprises a front roller 21 and a backroller 22 respectively coupled to a front end and the rear end of thebase 11 and rotating about each's self-axis, respectively. The self-axisof the front roller 21 is defined as a first axis A1 and the self-axisof the back roller 22 is defined as a second axis A2, and both extendfrom the left to the right of the manual treadmill 100. A continuousbelt 23 rotates around the front roller 21 and the back roller 22simultaneously with an adequate tension so that the continuous belt 23includes a top surface 24 (or a bottom surface) rotating on the base 11from front to back of the manual treadmill 100 and drives the frontroller 21 and the back roller 22 doing in-situ rotations while rotating.

As shown in FIG. 2 , the height of the front roller 21 is higher thanthat of the back roller 22 so that the top surface 24 of the continuousbelt 23 is an inclined plane. A user can exercise thereon such as slowwalking, fast walking, slow running, fast running, walking backward,running backward, and so on. Under a normal exercise condition, the userexercises by applying a force with the user's feet from the higher frontend of the top surface 24 to the lower rear end of the top surface 24 todrive the rotation of the continuous belt 23. A plate 26 is supported bythe base 11 and is located under the top surface 24 of the continuousbelt 23 to support the weight of the user, and the top surface 24 of thecontinuous belt 23 is parallel with the top surface of the plate 26 forthe user to step thereon.

As shown in FIG. 1 , a confining system 30 is optionally set in theexercise space S, and the confining system 30 is substantially adetachable Y shape belt connecting to the front frame 15 and the backuprights 13 and extending on and with an adequate distance away from thecontinuous belt 23. When a user enters the exercise space S to walk orrun, the confining system 30 confines the waist of a user to impede theuser further entering the exercise space S so that without needed togrip the side poles 14 or the handrails (a portion of the front frame15) of the manual treadmill 100, the user still gets a reaction forcehelping the feet of the user to push the continuous belt 23 rotatingbackward. The side poles 14, the handrails, and the confining system 30are optional to the manual treadmill 100. In other words, whileexercising without a reaction force, a user still can drive thecontinuous belt 23 rotating from the higher front end to the lower backend by applying the user's weight upon the inclined top surface 24 ofthe continuous belt 23, where a portion of this weight applies a normalforce to the top surface 24 of the continuous belt 23, and a portion ofthis weight applies a driving force to the continuous belt 23, herecalled a dividing force.

A console 40 is set in the middle of the front frame 15 of the frame 10.The console 40 further includes a display apparatus 41 displayinginformation for a user to observe and a first inputting apparatus 42 fora user to input indication(s). The console in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 is anillustration, any other type of the displaying system such as acharacter display, a matrix display, an LCD display, and so on can beadopted individually or collectively to be the display apparatus 41. Thefirst inputting apparatus 42 can include a touch button, a knob, aslider, a driving lever, a touch screen, a contact switch, a non-contactswitch, or a combination thereof.

A user can set a target rotational speed of the continuous belt 23(target exercise speed) by inputting an indication to the firstinputting apparatus 42. For example, similar to operating a motorizedtreadmill, the user indicates a target exercise speed by keying in atarget number, touching the number keys, or using a plus key and/or aminus key repeatedly to set a target number, and so on, and thenentering the target rotational speed number to the first inputtingapparatus 42. Another way to enter a target exercise speed is for theuser to select or edit one exercise program by taking advantage of theaforementioned inputting methods, and wherein in the exercise program,the total exercise duration is fixed and the exercise speeds in theduration are changed chronologically. For example, in one exerciseprogram, the total exercise duration is 30 minutes and separated into 15time slots with the exercise speeds 2, 4, 4, 6, 6, 8, 8, 10, 8, 8, 6, 6,4, 4, 2 km/hr individually. The first inputting apparatus 42 for theuser to input the indication includes either setting a target exercisespeed value or selecting an exercise program without knowing the actualexercise speed. As an example, the user may select an exercise programsuch as “fast walking for 15 minutes”, “slow running for 30 minutes” oran exercise intensity program such as “Level 1”, “Level 2”. In apreferred embodiment, a second inputting apparatus 43 and a thirdinputting apparatus 44 are respectively mounted on the front uprights 12of the frame 10 for the user inputting the commonly used exerciseprogram indications. For example, the second inputting apparatus 43provides a “warm-up” button corresponding to a warm-up program and a“cool-down” button corresponding to a cool-down program, and the thirdinputting apparatus 44 provides a “+” button corresponding to a speed-upindication and a “−” button corresponding to a slow-down indication. Inthe following sections, the first inputting apparatus 42, the secondinputting apparatus 43, and the third inputting apparatus 44 arecollectively called “an inputting apparatus”.

While exercising, the display apparatus 41 can keep displaying ordisplaying intermittently the following information such as the settarget exercise speed and/or the exercise program, the currentrotational speed of the continuous belt 23 (current exercise speed), thetime lapsed, the total exercise distance, the total calories consumed,and so on. The total exercise distance can be calculated by takingadvantage of a formula based on the combination of the parameters suchas the number of the rotating turns of the front roller 21 or the backroller 22. The total calories consumed can be calculated by takingadvantage of a formula based on the combination of the parameters suchas the exercise speed, the exercise time lapsed, and the exercisedistance, and so on.

Referring to FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 , one rotating axis 27 is coaxiallyextending from a left end of the front roller 21 and one metallicflywheel 28 is coaxially connecting to an outer end of the rotating axis27 so that the flywheel 28 and the front roller 21 rotate simultaneouslyto raise the momentum of inertia of the front roller 21. Due to addedinertia from the flywheel 28, the continuous belt 23 driven by the frontroller 21 rotates more consistently, maintaining a more stable speed.

In FIG. 5 , a resistance adjusting apparatus 50 which is used to impedethe rotating of the front roller 21 (and the continuous belt 23) is setat the left end of the front roller 21. The resistance adjustingapparatus 50 mainly includes a metallic disc 51, a stepper motor 52, adeflection portion 53, and two permanent magnets 54. The metallic disc51 is coaxially connected to the rotating axis 27 and doing an in-siturotation according to the rotation of the front roller 21. Thedeflection portion 53 is pivotally mounted on the base 11 about aleft-right extending third axis A3 (shown in FIG. 4 ) and is locatednear a front periphery of the metallic disc 51. The two permanentmagnets 54 are respectively mounted on the two corresponding innersurfaces of one U-shape portion of the deflection portion 53 and oneextending space is therefore formed between the permanent magnets 54corresponding to the left-right extending axial thickness of themetallic disc 51. The front periphery of the metallic disc 51 can enterthe extending space between the permanent magnets 54. The stepper motor52 is mounted on the base 11 with a step angle of 0.9 degree and iscapable of driving the deflection portion 53 rotating about the thirdaxis A3 in a range of about 60 degrees between an outermost position(solid line) and an innermost position (dotted line) shown in FIG. 4 .The deflection portion 53 can be selected to locate at one of the 64predetermined positions in the 60 degrees including the outermostposition and the innermost position. When the deflection portion 53locates more toward the outermost position (clockwise), from the sideview, the overlapping area of the two permanent magnets 54 and themetallic disc 51 is less, and when the deflection portion 53 locatesmore toward the innermost position (counterclockwise), from the sideview, the overlapping area of the two permanent magnets 54 and themetallic disc 51 is more. In this embodiment, the resistance adjustingapparatus 50 is an eddy current brake. When the metallic disc 51entering the extending space between the two permanent magnets 54, aneddy current resistance is formed between the metallic disc 51 and thetwo permanent magnets 52. Because of connecting to the metallic disc 51,the rotation of the continuous belt 23 is impeded by the eddy currentresistance. Furthermore, the magnitude of the eddy current resistance ischanged according to the overlapping area of the two permanent magnets54 and the metallic disc 51. In the embodiment, because the steppermotor 52 has 64-steps adjustment regarding the locations of thedeflection portion 53, the magnitude of the eddy current resistance alsohas 64 levels.

In addition to the aforementioned eddy current brake, the resistanceadjusting apparatus 50 could also be in other forms such as: replacingthe permanent magnets by a position fixed electromagnet set so that themagnitude of the eddy current can be adjusted by controlling themagnitude of the current of the electromagnet set; a power generator (DCmotor) with a load circuit connecting to the front roller 21 and/or theback roller 22, the rotor of the power generator is driven by therotation of the front roller 21 and/or the back roller 22, and themagnitude of the resistance can be adjusted by changing the amount ofthe load through the load circuit; and a contact type resistanceproducer such as forming friction blocks to replace the permanentmagnets 52 and adjusting the rotating resistance of the flywheel 28 bycontrolling the tightness the friction blocks touching the flywheel 28through an electric actuator and so on.

Referring to FIG. 5 , a power generating apparatus 70 is mounted at theperiphery of the right end of the front roller 21 (the left part of FIG.5 ). The structure of the power generating apparatus 70 is similar witha DC motor, which includes a rotor (not shown) coaxially connected withits outer end to a small pulley 71. Correspondingly, the right end ofthe front roller 21 is coaxially connected to a large pulley 72, and atransmission belt 73 connects the small pulley 71 and the large pulley72. Therefore, while the large pulley 72 is doing an in-situ rotation,the rotor of the power generating apparatus 70 is driven to rotate witha higher speed so that the power generating apparatus 70 starts toprovide electric power when the speed is higher than a threshold. Theelectric power can be stored in a power storing apparatus (not shown)and then be provided to the electronic apparatus of the manual treadmillsuch as the display apparatus 41, the inputting apparatus 42, 43, 44,the resistance adjusting apparatus 50, and so on while needed. Themanual treadmill of the present disclosure can also include other powersupplying apparatus and/or an outer power source.

Because the output power of the power generating apparatus 70 is relatedto the rotational speed of the front roller 21, the rotational speed ofthe continuous belt 23 can be evaluated depending on the output powerand/or the output current of the power generating apparatus 70. In otherwords, the power generating apparatus 70, the small pulley 71, the largepulley 72, and the transmission belt 73 constitute a sensing apparatus80 which can sense a current rotational speed of the continuous belt 23.

The sensing apparatus 80 also can be, but is not limited to: a photosensor, a magnetic sensor, an imaging sensor, and so on. In addition tosensing the rotational speed of the front roller 21, the sensor can alsosense the rotational speed of the back roller 22, and/or any otherstructure which rotates or otherwise moves along with the rotation ofthe continuous belt 23. In one embodiment, a disc shutter (not shown)rotating along with the rotation of the front pulley 21 is formed, aplurality of equally spaced openings are formed at the outer peripheryof the disc shutter, and a photo emitter and a photo receiver arerespectively located at the opposite sides of the disc shutter. Bycounting the times (calculating the frequency) the light passing throughthe disc shutter, the rotational speed of the disc shutter can beevaluated, and the rotational speed of the continuous belt 23 isobtained. As an example, if the rotational speed ratio of the discshutter to the front roller 21 is 1:1 and the circumference of the frontroller 21 is 25 centimeters, when the rotational speed of the discshutter is 300 rpm, the rotational speed of the continuous belt 23, 4.5kilometers per hour, can be evaluated.

Generally speaking, in the present disclosure, the sensing apparatus cansense a parameter corresponding to a current rotational speed of thecontinuous belt and producing a corresponding speed signal. Thecorresponding speed signal may be an unprocessed signal (pulse wavesignals excited by the photo receiver) and/or a processed signal(analogic signals or digital signals corresponding to the rotationalspeed).

FIG. 6 discloses an illustration of an exercise speed control mechanismof the manual treadmill 100. A user U walks or runs on the top surface24 of the continuous belt 23. While exercising, the user U often stepson the treadmill 100 in a predetermined portion, a main force zone 25,of the continuous belt 23. Because the main force zone 25 is an inclinedsurface that is high in the front and low in the back, a dividing forceof the downward force applied by the user U parallel with the inclinedsurface is therefore formed. The dividing force provides a force fromthe upper front to the lower back to help the continuous belt 23rotating accordingly. In other words, the dividing force is the portionof the downward force that drives the inclined top surface 24 of thecontinuous belt 23 to rotate. Meanwhile, the resistance apparatus 50provides a resistance to impede the rotation of the continuous belt 23(and thereby to impede the walking or running of the user), and thesensing apparatus 80 senses the current rotational speed of thecontinuous belt 23 (current exercise speed).

The manual treadmill 100 further includes a control unit 60. The controlunit 60 calculates, judges, and controls according to programmed settingrules. In one embodiment, the control unit 60 including a programmablemicroprocessor and an accessible memory, both installed in the console40 and electrically in communication with the display apparatus 41, theinputting apparatus 42, 43, 44, the resistance adjusting apparatus 50,and the sensing apparatus 80. This electronic communication may be wiredor wireless. When the user inputs an indication through the inputtingapparatus 42, 43, 44, the inputting apparatus 42, 43, 44 produces onecorresponding indication signal to the control unit 60. When thecorresponding indication signal is directed to a rotational speed of thecontinuous belt 23, the control unit 60 receives a target speed value(target exercise speed value). The control unit 60 also receives acurrent speed value (current rotational speed of the continuous belt 23)by receiving the corresponding current speed signal from the sensingapparatus 80. The control unit 60 produces a first control signal tocontrol the resistance adjusting apparatus 50 (driving circuit of thestepper motor 52) in order to change the magnitude of the resistance.The control unit 60 controls the display apparatus 41 to displayspecific information such as the current speed value, the target speedvalue, the time lapsed, the total exercise distance, the total caloriesconsumed, and so on. The power source of the control unit 60 can be fromthe aforementioned power generating apparatus 70, the power storingapparatus, and/or an outside power source such as AC electrical servicefrom an electrical receptacle.

FIG. 7 is a flow chart of the manual treadmill's control mode. Accordingto the control mode, the control unit 60 repeatedly compares the currentrotational speed of the continuous belt 23 (current speed value) and thetarget rotational speed of the continuous belt 23 (target speed value).When the current speed value is lower than the target speed value andthe resistance hasn't reached a lower limit of available resistancesettings, the control unit 60 controls the resistance adjustingapparatus 50 to decrease the resistance. Conversely, when the currentspeed value is higher than the target speed value and the resistancehasn't reached an upper limit of available resistance settings, thecontrol unit 60 controls the resistance adjusting apparatus 50 toincrease the resistance. The following sections describe each procedurein more detail. Wherein the word “Y” shown at the branch means thejudgement result is yes, and the word “N” shown at the branch means thejudgement result is no.

Procedure 101 is “Mode Start”. The control mode can be started either bythe control unit 60 after it receives an indication signal from the userthrough the inputting apparatus 41, 42, 43, or by the control unit 60automatically according to a predetermined rule. In the lattersituation, each time when the manual treadmill 100 receives power, oreach time when the manual treadmill 100 is restarted, or each time thecontrol unit 60 judges that a user starts to exercise on the continuousbelt 23 according to the variation of the current speed value, thecontrol unit 60 starts the control mode automatically.

Procedure 102 is “Setting Predetermined Speed Value”. When the controlmode starts, the control unit 60 sets a predetermined speed value in thetarget speed value to be a temporary target speed value. Thepredetermined speed value is preferentially set to a slow speed such as4 km/hr.

Procedure 103 is “Setting Target Speed Value”. In this procedure, thecontrol unit 60 judges whether or not it receives any indication signalincluding setting a target speed value from the inputting apparatus 41,42, and/or 43, such as the user indicating a specific target speedvalue, the user indicating to speed up (or to slow down), or the userselecting one specific exercise program.

Procedure 104 is “Changing Target Speed Value”. In Procedure 103, if theuser is exercising according to the previous predetermined exerciseprogram, the control unit 60 compares the previous predeterminedexercise program and the set target speed value to judge if it needs tochange the target speed value or not. If the target speed value needs tobe changed, it goes to procedure 104, and the control unit 60 changesthe target speed value. If the target speed value needs not to bechanged, it goes to procedure 105.

Procedure 105 is “Is the current speed value is smaller than the targetspeed value?”. In procedure 105, the control unit 60 compares thecurrent speed value and the target speed value to judge if the currentspeed value is smaller than the target speed value (or smaller more thana predetermined value such as 0.1 km/hr comparing to the target speedvalue). If the judgement result is yes (Y), it goes to procedure 107. Ifthe judgement result is no (N), it goes to procedure 106.

Procedure 106 is “Is the current speed value is larger than the targetspeed value?”. In procedure 106, it means the current speed value is notsmaller than the target speed value (or not smaller more than apredetermined value comparing to the target speed value), and thecontrol unit 60 further compares the current speed value and the targetspeed value to judge if the current speed value is larger than thetarget speed value (or larger more than a predetermined value such as0.1 km/hr comparing to the target speed value). If the judgement resultis yes (Y), it goes to procedure 110. If the judgement result is no (N),it goes back to procedure 103(104) to judge if it needs to change thetarget speed value.

Procedure 107 is “Resistance reaches an upper limit?”. In procedure 107,it means the current speed value is smaller than the target speed value(or smaller more than a predetermined value comparing to the targetspeed value), and the control unit 60 further judges whether or not theresistance has reached a lower limit of available resistance settings tojudge if the deflection portion 53 is located at the outermost positionas shown in FIG. 4 . If the judgement result is yes (Y), it goes toprocedure 109. If the judgement result is no (N), it goes back toprocedure 108.

Procedure 108 is “Decrease Resistance”. In procedure 108, the controlunit 60 controls the resistance adjusting apparatus 50 to decrease theresistance. In the present embodiment, the control unit 60 controls thedeflection portion 53 to deflect toward the outermost position. Then, itgoes back to procedure 103(104) to judge if it needs to change thetarget speed value.

Correspondingly, procedure 110 is “Resistance reaches an upper limit?”.In procedure 110, it means the current speed value is larger than thetarget speed value (or larger more than a predetermined value comparingto the target speed value), and the control unit 60 further judges ifthe resistance has reached an upper limit of available resistancesettings such as to judge if the deflection portion 53 is located at theinnermost position as shown in FIG. 4 . If the judgement result is yes(Y), it goes to procedure 112. If the judgement result is no (N), itgoes to procedure 111.

Procedure 111 is “Increase Resistance”. In procedure 111, the controlunit 60 controls the resistance adjusting apparatus 50 to increase theresistance. In the present embodiment, the control unit 60 controls thedeflection portion 53 to deflect toward the innermost position. Then, itgoes back to procedure 103 (104) to judge if it needs to change thetarget speed value.

In one embodiment, the control unit 60 keeps controlling to decrease (orincrease) the resistance in procedure 108 (or 111), and the continuousbelt 23 increases (or decreases) its rotational speed accordingly untilthe current speed value is equal to the target speed value (or thedifference is smaller than a predetermined value) or until theresistance reaches the lower limit (or the upper limit) of availableresistance settings before the current speed value is equal to thetarget speed value. Finally, it changes from procedure 108 (or 111) toprocedure 103.

In another embodiment, the control unit 60 controls to decrease (orincrease) a predetermined amount (usually a small amount) of resistance.For example, the control unit 60 controls the deflection portion 53 todeflect a step toward the innermost (or outermost) position (0.9degree). And then, it goes back to procedure 103 (104). In thisembodiment, even the difference is large, after cyclically repeating thecomparing procedure (procedure 103 (104)) and the controlling procedure(procedure 108 (or 111)), the current speed value reaches the targetspeed value gradually.

Procedure 109 is “Feedback/Correcting Target Speed Value”. In procedure109, the current rotational speed of the continuous belt 23 (currentspeed value) is still smaller than the setting indication signal by theuser (target speed value), but the resistance has reached the lowerlimit of available resistance settings. In other words, the rotationalspeed of the manual treadmill 100 is not able to be increased bydecreasing the resistance anymore. In this case, the control unit 60controls the display apparatus 41 displaying the feedback informationsuch as to state that the exercise speed has reached the upper limit andthe control unit 60 corrects the target speed value and the upper limitof the exercise speed that can be set by the user through the inputtingapparatus 42, 43, 44 according to the current speed value.

Correspondingly, procedure 112 is also “Feedback/Correcting Target SpeedValue”. In procedure 112, the current rotational speed of the continuousbelt 23 (current speed value) is still larger than the setting speed bythe user (target speed value), but the resistance has reached the upperlimit of available resistance settings. In other words, the rotationalspeed of the manual treadmill 100 is not able to be reduced byincreasing the resistance anymore. In this case, the control unit 60controls the display apparatus 41 displaying the feedback informationsuch as to state that the exercise speed has reached the lower limit andthe control unit 60 corrects the target speed value and the lower limitof the exercise speed that can be set by the user through the inputtingapparatus 42, 43, 44 according to the current speed value.

Theoretically, if other conditions are kept the same, the user withhigher weight will obtain both a higher upper limit of the exercisespeed and a higher lower limit of the exercise speed. At the beginning,the inputting apparatus 42, 43, 44 is available for the user to set anarbitrarily target speed value in a reasonable scope. For example, boththe user weighting 50 kg and the user weighting 100 kg can set thetarget speed value as 16 km/hr or 0.5 km/hr. However, the lighter usermay be too light to make the exercise speed achieving as high as 16km/hr, and the heavier user may be too heavy to make the exercise speedachieving as low as 0.5 km/hr. Therefore, procedures 109 and 112 areproduced to prevent the extreme situations. Through the procedures 109and 112, the setting range of the upper limit and the lower limit of theexercise speed is corrected during the whole control mode as shown inFIG. 7 .

In one embodiment, the control unit 60 automatically evaluates therotational speed of the continuous belt 23 when the resistance isadjusted to the lower limit (or the upper limit) of available resistancesettings according to the variation correlation of the resistance valueand the current speed value. In addition, the control unit 60 correctsthe setting range of the upper limit and the lower limit of the exercisespeed accordingly. Therefore, the user has a better exercise experienceon the manual treadmill 100 by realizing the individual achievable upperlimit and lower limit of the exercise speed.

According to the description of FIG. 7 , when a user walks or runs onthe manual treadmill 100 under the control mode, the resistance appliedto the continuous belt 23 can be increased (or decreased) automaticallyif the current speed value is larger (or smaller) than the target speedvalue, and through this feedback system, the current speed value isadjusted to approach the target speed value. Furthermore, by repeatedlycomparing the current speed value and the target speed value and thenadjusting the resistance according to the comparing result, even if theuser changes the target speed value and/or the force applied to thecontinuous belt 23 during the exercise, the rotational speed of thecontinuous belt 23 still keeps approaching the set target speed value.

In addition to the control mode, in one embodiment, the manual treadmill100 also can be operated under another mode. For example, under anothermode, the control unit 60 doesn't adjust the resistance automatically,and the resistance is only adjusted by directly inputting the indicationregarding the magnitude of the resistance through the inputtingapparatus 42, 43, 44. That is, similar with the conventional manualtreadmill, the user walks or runs on the treadmill with a setresistance, and the user also can change the resistance value anytimeduring the exercise.

In the present embodiment, the continuous belt 23 includes a continuousannular surface by connecting a long belt's two ends. The plate 26 islocated under the top surface 24 of the continuous belt 23 to supportthe user's weight. In the structure, the friction between the continuousbelt 23 and the plate 26 forms a portion of the resistance to impede therotation of the continuous belt 23.

In another embodiment, the continuous belt is replaced by a slat-beltstructure 33 which is formed by connecting a plurality of transverselyextending slats with flexible connecting means such as hinges. Theslat-belt structure 33 can support the user's weight directly withoutthe need of the plate and therefore the rotation resistance thereof canbe decreased. As a design choice, a top surface 34 of the slat-beltstructure 33 can be configured into different shapes, including aninclined flat surface as shown in FIG. 6 or a concave surface as shownin FIG. 8 . The manual treadmill structure 100 in FIG. 8 is similar tothat shown in FIG. 6 except for including a concave top surface 34formed by the slat-belt structure 33, therefore the drawing numbers usedare the same as those shown in FIG. 6 except for the slat-belt structure33, the concave top surface 34, and a concave main force zone 35. Theconcave top surface 34 includes a middle portion lower than a frontportion and a rear portion thereof. As shown in the figure, whileexercising, a user U is stepping on the concave main force zone 35between the front portion and the middle portion of the concave topsurface 34. Similar to the main force zone 25 shown in FIG. 6 , the mainforce zone 35 is high in the front and low in the back. While exercisingin the main force zone 35, a dividing force of the downward forceapplied by the user U parallel with the inclined surface is thereforeformed. The dividing force provides a force from the upper front to thelower back to drive the continuous belt 23 rotating accordingly. In thisembodiment, because the slope of the top surface 35 is continuouslychanged, the dividing force is not a constant force to rotate thecontinuous belt 23. However, by taking advantage of the control modemechanism mentioned above, the exercise speed can still keep or approacha set target speed value without obvious fluctuations.

FIG. 9 shows an illustration of an exercise speed control mechanism of amanual treadmill 200 in accordance with a second embodiment of thepresent disclosure. Comparing to the treadmill 100 shown in FIG. 6 andFIG. 8 , the main difference of the manual treadmill 200 is that theframe includes a fixed portion 16 supported by the ground and a mobileportion 17 which is capable of changing its relative position to thefixed portion 16. In this embodiment, the mobile portion 17 is pivotallyconnected to the fixed portion 16 about a transversely extending axissuch that the mobile portion 17 is capable rotated with its rear endabout the transversely extending axis. A continuous belt 23 is rotatablymounted on the mobile portion 17 includes a top surface 24 extendingfrom a higher front portion to a lower rear portion. When the mobileportion 17 is rotated about its rear end, an elevation angle between animaginary line extending from the front portion to the rear portion (thetop surface 24) and the substantially horizontal ground is changedaccordingly (relative to the fixed portion 16). An elevation angleadjusting apparatus 90 is mounted between the fixed portion 16 and themobile portion 17 and includes an incline motor (not shown) which isdesigned to drive the mobile portion 17, changing its position relativeto the fixed portion 16 such that in the present embodiment, the inclinemotor drives the front portion of the mobile portion 17 to position itvertically up or down relative to its rear end. By rotating the frontportion of the mobile portion 17 about an axis at the rear end of themobile portion 17, an incline angle for the mobile portion 17 can be setanywhere within a predetermined angle range. A control unit 60 drivesthe vertical position of the mobile portion 17 by controlling theelevation angle adjusting apparatus 90 with a second control signal.That is, the control unit 60 increases or decreases the elevation anglebetween the mobile portion 17 and the fixed portion 16.

In another embodiment, only a portion of the continuous belt 23 ismounted to the mobile portion 17. For example, only the front end of thecontinuous belt 23 is supported by the front roller of the mobileportion 17 and the rear end of the continuous belt 23 is supported bythe back roller of the mobile portion 17. Therefore, when the relativeposition of the mobile portion 17 and the fixed portion 16 is changed,the relative position of the portion the continuous belt 23 coupled tothe mobile portion 17 and the fixed portion 16 is changed accordingly.

In the second embodiment, the manual treadmill 200 also includes adisplay apparatus 41, an inputting apparatus 42, 43, 44, a resistanceadjusting apparatus 50, and a sensing apparatus 80, and all theapparatuses include similar structures and functions with the previousembodiment.

FIGS. 10A and 10B respectively illustrate schematic views when the topsurface 24 of the continuous belt 23 located with a first elevationangle θ1 and with a second elevation angle θ2 relative to the ground. Ineach of the figures, the continuous belt 23 endures a downward force DF.In more detail, when a user U applies a downward force DF such as theuser's weight as shown in FIG. 10A, there is a smaller dividing forceCF1 in the direction parallel with the top surface 24 corresponding tothe smaller first elevation angle θ1. When a user U applies a downwardforce DF such as the user's weight as shown in FIG. 10B, there is alarger dividing force CF2 in the direction parallel with the top surface24 corresponding to the larger second elevation angle θ2. That is, ifother conditions are maintained, when the elevation angle of the topsurface 24 is smaller (or larger), the dividing force applied by theuser from the front to the back along the top surface 24 is smaller (orlarger), and the rotational speed of the continuous belt 23 is thereforeslower (or faster).

Although the top surfaces 24 shown in FIGS. 9, 10A, and 10B are inclinedsurfaces, in another embodiment, a concave top surface 34 as disclosedin FIG. 8 can also be applied. No matter what the configuration of thetop surface is, when the continuous belt 23 or a portion of thecontinuous belt 23 moves along with the mobile portion 17, the mainforce zone 25 (35) of the top surface 24 (34) changes its elevationangle accordingly. If the elevation angle is larger (or smaller), theratio the force applied to drive the continuous belt 23 is larger (orsmaller).

FIG. 11 is a flow chart of the manual treadmill's control mode inaccordance with the second embodiment. In this control mode, similarwith the control mode mentioned in FIG. 7 , the control unit 60 isrepeatedly comparing a current speed value and a target speed valuewherein the definitions thereof are similar with those in the firstembodiment. Every time when the current speed value is smaller (orlarger) than the target speed value and the resistance hasn't yetreached a lower limit (or an upper limit) of available resistancesettings, the control unit 60 controls the resistance adjustingapparatus 50 to decrease (or increase) the resistance. On the contrary,every time when the current speed value is smaller (or larger) than thetarget speed value and the resistance has reached the lower limit (orthe upper limit) of available resistance settings, the control unit 60controls the elevation angle adjusting apparatus 90 to increase (ordecrease) the elevation angle. The procedures 201˜208, 212, and 213, aresimilar with the procedures 101˜108, 110, and 111 described in FIG. 7and are not described again.

If the procedure changes from 207 to 209, it means the currentrotational speed of the continuous belt 23 (current speed value) issmaller than the target speed value which is set by the user, and theresistance of the continuous belt 23 has reached the lower limit ofavailable resistance settings. In procedure 209, the control unit 60identifies if the elevation angle has reached an upper limit ofavailable resistance settings or not. If the answer is yes (Y), theprocedure goes from 209 to 211, and if the answer is no (N), theprocedure goes from 209 to 210. In procedure 210, the control unit 60controls the elevation angle adjusting apparatus 90 to increase theelevation angle and then goes back to procedure 203(204) to judge if itneeds to change the target speed value.

Similarly, if the procedure changes from 212 to 214, it means thecurrent rotational speed of the continuous belt 23 (current speed value)is larger than the target speed value which is set by the user, and theresistance of the continuous belt 23 has reached the upper limit ofavailable resistance settings. In procedure 214, the control unit 60identifies if the elevation angle has reached the lower limit of theadjustable scope or not. If the answer is yes (Y), the procedure goesfrom 214 to 216; and if the answer is no (N), the procedure goes from214 to 215. In procedure 215, the control unit 60 controls the elevationangle adjusting apparatus 90 to decrease the elevation angle and thengoes back to procedure 203(204) to judge if it needs to change thetarget speed value.

There are two methods for the control unit 60 to increase the elevationangle in procedure 210 and to decrease the elevation angle in procedure215. In one embodiment, the control unit 60 keeps increasing (ordecreasing) the elevation angle in procedure 210/215 such that therotational speed of the continuous belt 23 keeps becoming larger (orsmaller) because the dividing force keeps becoming larger (or smaller)until the current speed value is equal to the target speed value (or thedifference is smaller than a predetermined value) or until the elevationangle reaches the lower limit (or the upper limit) of the adjustablescope before the current speed value is equal to the target speed value.Finally, the procedure changes from procedure 210 (or 215) to procedure203 (204). In another embodiment, the control unit 60 controls todecrease (increase) a predetermined amount (usually a small amount) ofelevation angle. And then, the procedure goes back to procedure 203(204). In this embodiment, even the difference is large, aftercyclically repeating the comparing procedure (procedure 203 (204)) andthe controlling procedure (procedure 210 (or 215)), the current speedvalue reaches the target speed value gradually.

If the procedure changes from 209 to 211, it means the currentrotational speed of the continuous belt 23 (current speed value) issmaller than the target speed value which is set by the user, theresistance of the continuous belt 23 has reached the lower limit ofavailable resistance settings, and the elevation angle has reached theupper limit of the adjustable scope. In other words, the exercise speedcan't be increased by decreasing the resistance and/or increasing theelevation angle. Meanwhile, the control unit 60 controls the displayapparatus 41 displaying the feedback information such that the exercisespeed has reached the upper limit and corrects the target speed valueand the upper limit of the exercise speed that can be set by the userthrough the inputting apparatus 42, 43, 44 according to the currentspeed value.

Similarly, if the procedure changes from 214 to 216, it means thecurrent rotational speed of the continuous belt 23 (current speed value)is larger than the target speed value which is set by the user, theresistance of the continuous belt 23 has reached the upper limit ofavailable resistance settings, and elevation angle has reached the lowerlimit of the adjustable scope. In other words, the exercise speed can'tbe decreased by increasing the resistance and/or decreasing theelevation angle. Meanwhile, the control unit 60 controls the displayapparatus 41 displaying the feedback information such as that theexercise speed has reached the lower limit and corrects the target speedvalue and the lower limit of the exercise speed that can be set by theuser through the inputting apparatus 42, 43, 44 according to the currentspeed value.

In procedure 203, in addition to judge if it needs to change the targetspeed value or not, the control unit 60 also judges if it receives anyelevation angle indication signal including setting an elevation anglefrom the inputting apparatus 41, 42, and/or 43 or not. If the controlunit 60 receives an elevation angle indication signal regarding settingan elevation angle, the procedure goes to 204 first, and the controlunit 60 controls the elevation angle adjusting apparatus 90 to match theelevation angle indication signal, and then the procedure goes to 205.On the other hand, if it doesn't need to change the target speed valueand the control unit 60 doesn't receive any elevation angle indicationsignal regarding setting an elevation angle, it goes to procedure 205directly.

In one embodiment, during the aforementioned control mode, the controlunit 60 automatically evaluates the rotational speed of the continuousbelt 23 when the resistance is adjusted to the lower limit (or the upperlimit) of available resistance settings and the elevation angle isadjusted to the upper limit (or the lower limit) of the adjustable scopeaccording to the variation correlation of the resistance value, theelevation angle, and the current speed value. The control unit 60corrects the setting range of the upper limit and the lower limit of theexercise speed accordingly. Therefore, the user has a better exerciseexperience on the manual treadmill 200 by realizing the individualachievable upper limit and lower limit of the exercise speed.

According to the description of FIG. 11 aforementioned, when a userwalks or runs on the manual treadmill 200 under the control mode, theelevation angle of the top surface 24 and the resistance applied to thecontinuous belt 23 can be increased (or decreased) automatically if thecurrent speed value is larger (or smaller) than the target speed value,and the current speed value finally approaches the target speed value.Furthermore, by repeatedly comparing the current speed value and thetarget speed value and then adjusting the resistance according to thecomparing result, even the user changes the target speed value, and/orthe elevation angle, and/or the force applied to the continuous belt 23,the rotational speed of the continuous belt 23 still keeps approachingthe set target speed value.

Under the control mode, although the elevation angle will be changedautomatically according to the comparing result, the control unitdoesn't control the elevation angle adjusting apparatus to change theelevation angle if the resistance doesn't reach the lower (or upper)limit of the adjustable scope. That is, according to this control mode,in most situations, the user approximately walks or runs on thetreadmill with a predetermined fixed elevation angle.

In addition to the control mode aforementioned, in one embodiment, themanual treadmill 200 also can be operated under another mode. Forexample, under another mode, the control unit 60 neither adjusts theelevation angle nor adjusts the resistance automatically, and theelevation angle and the resistance are adjusted only by directlyinputting the indication regarding the magnitude of the elevation angleand the magnitude of the resistance through the inputting apparatus 42,43, 44. That is, similar with the conventional manual treadmill, theuser walks or runs on the treadmill with predetermined fixed elevationangle and resistance, and the user also can change the elevation angleand the resistance value anytime during the exercise.

In one embodiment, the user can only set the target speed value but notthe elevation angle and resistance under another mode. That is, thecontrol unit 60 aims only on matching the set target speed value andthen the control unit 60 adjusts the resistance and the elevation angleaccordingly. Therefore, at the same time (or under the same procedure),the control unit adjusts either one of the elevation angle and theresistance or both of the elevation angle and the resistance.

In another embodiment, the user can select one of a plurality of theexercise intensity programs which comprises a predetermined elevationangle value and a predetermined speed value through the inputtingapparatus 42, 43, 44. When the control unit 60 receives a signalcorresponding to the selection of the user, the control unit 60 controlsthe elevation angle adjusting apparatus 90 to change the elevation angleaccording to the predetermined elevation angle value and to take thepredetermined speed value as the target speed value. Accordingly, theuser can rapidly raise or reduce the total exercise intensity.

For the usage convenience, in one embodiment, if the control unit 60judges that there is no user exercising on the treadmill such that thecontrol unit 60 receives no speed signal or the speed signal keeps zerofor a predetermined period of time, the control unit 60 controls theresistance adjusting apparatus 90 to produce a max resistance and/orcontrols a brake apparatus (not shown) to produce a brake resistance.The max resistance and the brake resistance can make a user stay stillon the continuous belt 23 (33) of the manual treadmill 100 (200). Thatis, the rotation resistance is larger than the dividing force the userapplied to the continuous belt 23 (33) to drive the rotation thereof.And then, when the control unit 60 receives an indication signalregarding starting exercise from the inputting apparatus 42, 43, 44, thecontrol unit 60 controls the display apparatus 41 to display a startreminding information for the user and controls the resistance adjustingapparatus 90 and/or the brake apparatus to reduce the resistance to alevel that the continuous belt 23 (33) can rotate when the user stepsthereon after a predetermined period of time thereafter.

The structure and the adjusting mechanism of the brake apparatus aresimilar with the aforementioned resistance adjusting apparatus. Forexample, the user starts the exercise by inputting a start indicationsignal through the inputting apparatus such as pushing a “start” or a“go” material button (or virtual button) or pushing a “confirm” or a“ok” material button (or virtual button) after setting the targetexercise speed or selecting an exercise intensity program.

In another embodiment, if the control unit 60 receives a stop indicationsignal from the inputting apparatus or if the previous selected exerciseprogram finishes, the control unit controls the resistance adjustingapparatus and/or the brake apparatus to produce an adequate amount ofresistance to stop the continuous belt in a predetermined period of time(usually a small period of time). For example, the user stops theexercise by inputting the stop indication signal through the inputtingapparatus such as pushing a “pause”, a “stop”, or an “E-stop” materialbutton (or virtual button), or the user stops the manual treadmill bytaking advantage of a safety-clip apparatus. The safety-clip apparatusincludes a rope including one front end connected to a magnet or a plugwhich is detachably attached to a checking structure on the manualtreadmill and one rear end connected to a clip clipping to the clothesof the user. When the user stops exercising and leaves the treadmill,the front end of the safety-clip apparatus detaches from the checkingstructure along with the rope, and a stop indication signal is producedand transmitted to the control unit so that the control unit controls tostop the manual treadmill accordingly.

Overall, the present disclosure is directed to a manual treadmill thatis capable of being set at a target exercise speed according to thedemand of a user and is capable of being operated at the target exercisespeed for the user walking or running thereon. Wherein when the targetexercise speed is changed, the elevation angle of an exercise surfacewhich the user steps on (the top surface of the continuous belt) keepssubstantially the same or keeps as possible as it can be. The presentdisclosure is directed to a manual treadmill that is capable of beingset at a target exercise speed and an elevation angle of the exercisesurface according to the demand of a user and is capable of beingoperated at the target exercise speed and the specific elevation anglefor the user walking or running thereon.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that variousmodifications and variations can be made to the structure of the presentdisclosure without departing from the scope or spirit of the disclosure.In view of the foregoing, it is intended that the present disclosurecovers modifications and variations of this disclosure provided theyfall within the scope of the following claims and their equivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. A manual treadmill, comprising: a frame; atreadmill belt mounted on the frame, having a top surface for allowing auser to perform walking, jogging or running thereon and movement of theuser driving the treadmill belt to rotate with respect to the frame; asensing apparatus configured to sense a rotational speed of thetreadmill belt and generate a corresponding speed signal; a resistanceadjusting apparatus coupled to the treadmill belt for generating aresistance to impede rotation of the treadmill belt; an elevation angleadjusting apparatus configured to change an inclination of the topsurface of the treadmill belt; and a control unit in communication withthe sensor, the resistance adjusting apparatus and the elevation angleadjusting apparatus, the resistance adjusting apparatus being controlledby the control unit to control the resistance of the treadmill belt, theelevation angle adjusting apparatus being controlled by the control unitto control the inclination of the top surface of the treadmill belt;wherein the control unit receives the speed signal from the sensingapparatus and operates one of the resistance adjusting apparatus and theelevation angle adjusting apparatus to control the rotational speed ofthe treadmill belt, and further operates the other one of the resistanceadjusting apparatus and the elevation angle adjusting apparatus if therotational speed of the treadmill belt does not reach a predeterminedtarget rotational speed.
 2. The manual treadmill as claimed in claim 1,wherein the control unit is operable to increase the rotational speed ofthe treadmill belt by controlling the resistance adjusting apparatus todecrease the resistance and/or controlling the elevation angle adjustingapparatus to increase the inclination of the top surface of thetreadmill belt.
 3. The manual treadmill as claimed in claim 1, whereinthe control unit is operable to decrease the rotational speed of thetreadmill belt by controlling the resistance adjusting apparatus toincrease the resistance and/or controlling the elevation angle adjustingapparatus to decrease the inclination of the top surface of thetreadmill belt.
 4. The manual treadmill as claimed in claim 1, furthercomprises a front roller rotatably mounted on a front end of the frameand a rear roller rotatably mounted on a rear end of the frame, thetreadmill belt mounted around the front roller and the rear roller,wherein a height of front roller is higher than a height of the rearroller so that the top surface of the treadmill belt forms an inclinedplane for allowing the user to exercise thereon and the movement of theuser drives the treadmill belt to rotate in a direction from the frontroller to the rear roller.
 5. The manual treadmill as claimed in claim4, wherein the resistance adjusting apparatus is coupled to the frontroller for impeding rotation of the front roller so as to controlrotational speed of the treadmill belt.
 6. The manual treadmill asclaimed in claim 1, wherein the resistance adjusting apparatus is aneddy current brake configured to apply an eddy current resistance toimpede the rotation of the treadmill belt so as to control therotational speed of the treadmill belt.
 7. The manual treadmill asclaimed in claim 1, wherein when the control unit does not receive thespeed signal from the sensing apparatus or the speed signal keeps zerofor a predetermined period of time, the control unit determines thatthere is no user on the treadmill belt and controls the resistanceadjusting apparatus to increase the resistance to a maximum resistance.8. The manual treadmill as claimed in claim 1, wherein the control unitis operable to control the elevation angle adjusting to change theinclination of the top surface of the treadmill belt to a predeterminedelevation angle, and then control the resistance adjusting apparatus toadjust rotational speed of the treadmill belt.
 9. The manual treadmillas claimed in claim 1, wherein the control unit is operable to increasethe rotational speed of the treadmill belt by controlling the resistanceadjusting apparatus to decrease the resistance applied to the treadmillbelt, and wherein when the resistance has reached a lower limit ofavailable resistance setting, the control unit is operable to increasethe inclination of the top surface of the treadmill belt for furtherincreasing the rotational speed of the treadmill belt.
 10. A manualtreadmill, comprising: a frame; a treadmill belt mounted on the frame,having a top surface for allowing a user to perform walking, jogging orrunning thereon and movement of the user driving the treadmill belt torotate with respect to the frame; a sensing apparatus configured tosense a rotational speed of the treadmill belt and generate acorresponding speed signal; a resistance adjusting apparatus coupled tothe treadmill belt for generating a resistance to impede rotation of thetreadmill belt; an elevation angle adjusting apparatus configured tochange an inclination of the top surface of the treadmill belt; and acontrol unit in communication with the sensor, the resistance adjustingapparatus and the elevation angle adjusting apparatus, wherein thecontrol unit receives the speed signal from the sensing apparatus andselectively operates one or two of the resistance adjusting apparatusand the elevation angle adjusting apparatus until the rotational speedis within a predetermined target rotational speed range.
 11. The manualtreadmill as claimed in claim 10, wherein the control unit is operableto increase the rotational speed of the treadmill belt by controllingthe resistance adjusting apparatus to decrease the resistance and/orcontrolling the elevation angle adjusting apparatus to increase theinclination of the top surface of the treadmill belt.
 12. The manualtreadmill as claimed in claim 10, wherein the control unit is operableto decrease the rotational speed of the treadmill belt by controllingthe resistance adjusting apparatus to increase the resistance and/orcontrolling the elevation angle adjusting apparatus to decrease theinclination of the top surface of the treadmill belt.
 13. The manualtreadmill as claimed in claim 10, further comprises a front rollerrotatably mounted on a front end of the frame and a rear rollerrotatably mounted on a rear end of the frame, the treadmill belt mountedaround the front roller and the rear roller, wherein a height of frontroller is higher than a height of the rear roller so that the topsurface of the treadmill belt forms an inclined plane for allowing theuser to exercise thereon and the movement of the user drives thetreadmill belt to rotate in a direction from the front roller to therear roller.
 14. The manual treadmill as claimed in claim 13, whereinthe resistance adjusting apparatus is coupled to the front roller forimpeding rotation of the front roller so as to control rotational speedof the treadmill belt.
 15. The manual treadmill as claimed in claim 10,wherein the resistance adjusting apparatus is an eddy current brakeconfigured to apply an eddy current resistance to impede the rotation ofthe treadmill belt so as to control the rotational speed of thetreadmill belt.
 16. The manual treadmill as claimed in claim 10, whereinwhen the control unit does not receive the speed signal from the sensingapparatus or the speed signal keeps zero for a predetermined period oftime, the control unit determines that there is no user on the treadmillbelt and controls the resistance adjusting apparatus to increase theresistance to a maximum resistance.
 17. The manual treadmill as claimedin claim 10, wherein the control unit is operable to control theelevation angle adjusting to change the inclination of the top surfaceof the treadmill belt to a predetermined elevation angle, and thencontrol the resistance adjusting apparatus to adjust rotational speed ofthe treadmill belt.
 18. The manual treadmill as claimed in claim 10,wherein the control unit is operable to increase the rotational speed ofthe treadmill belt by controlling the resistance adjusting apparatus todecrease the resistance applied to the treadmill belt, and wherein whenthe resistance has reached a lower limit of available resistancesetting, the control unit is operable to increase the inclination of thetop surface of the treadmill belt for further increasing the rotationalspeed of the treadmill belt.